Cork-feeding machine



(No Model.)

- N. LARGE.

CORK FEEDING MACHINE.

, No. 423,610. Patented Mar. 18,

[N VEN T OR.

. WITNESSES,

A TTIORNE Y.

- section of said wheel and its casing.

UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE.

NATHAN LAROE, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

CORK-FEEDING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 423,610, dated March 18, 1890.

Application filed August 9, 1889- Seria1No.320,25'7. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, NATHAN LAROE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cork-Feeding Machines;

and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

' My invention relates to cork-feeding machines; and the object of the invention is to provide a machine to be used in connection with devices for corking bottles which will take the corks in quantity and automatically feed them to the corking device in position to be driven into the bottle, the whole being done without handling the corks except as they are thrown in quantity into the hopper through which the machine is supplied.

To this end the invention consists in the construction and arrangement of parts, substantially as shown and described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of my improved machine. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section of the upper part of the machine on the axis of the. feed-wheel, and showing a Fig. 3 is an enlarged perspective viewof one of the spouts on the feed-wheel. Fig. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of the top of the sup ply-tube and a section of the curved track leading to said tube and seen in the bottom of Fig. 1 in side elevation. Fig. 5 is an enlarged central vertical section of the corking mechanism, and more clearly showing the relation of the parts shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a horizontal section of Fig. 5, looking down, and showing the position of the bifurcated feed-slide when at the inward limit of its movement. Fig. 7 is a perspective View of the inner portion of the feed-slide. Fig. 8 is areduced side view of the opposite side of the feed-wheel and its casing. Fig. 9 is a detail of part of the pivoted bar for operating the feed-wheel, and Fig. 10 is a reduced edge view of the machine.

In carrying out my invention Iemploy a wheel 2, supported on a suitable spindle in a casing 8. The casing completely incloses the wheel, except as hereinafter described, and at one side has a hopper 4, into which the corks are thrown to enter the interior of the wheel through an opening in the side of the casing and a corresponding opening 5 in the side of the wheel. Around the periphery of the wheel, at suitable intervals, are arranged funnel or conical shaped spouts 6, in which the corks distribute and arrange themselves .when the wheel is turned, and these spouts are so constructed that the tendency of the corks will be to feed or fall endwise therein,

thus getting into the proper position to enter the tube from which they are supplied to the corking device. I

On the inside of the wheel are a series of division-plates 6, arranged at an inclination to the axis of the spouts and located midway between the spouts, so that two adjacent plates form a pocket over the mouth of a spout, and said pockets are widest at the base and narrowing toward the center of the wheel, so as to break up the body of corks in the bottom of the wheel and give a free feed any corks that may have dropped crosswise in the spouts or lodged therein from any other cause. This leaves each spout free as it turns down onthe right to take in one or more corks endwise and feed-them to the feed-spout. The size of the feed-spouts will depend on the size of the corks, and larggr or smaller spouts can be used as may be needed. Two or three sizes may be fed through one size of spout. In operation sometimes two or three corks will feed from a single spout at one stop, and again none at all may feed, according to the position of the corks.

The supply-tube 10 extends from the bottom of the casing 3 to the corker, and is of such length as to hold a supply of corks in reserve, so that if for any reason the feedwheel shall feed irregularly there will be no lack of corks to go steadily ahead with the work. The tube preferably has a longitudinal slot 11, which will always show the supply of corks on hand, and the tube is of such size that it will receive the corks endwise, but not crosswise, so that the corks must come to the corker below in proper position to enter the bottle. At the mouth of the tube is a spring-stop 12, which ordinarily will prevent a cork from passing over the tube if it I be not filled, and serves in part as a guide to direct the cork into the tube; but in case the tube be full, the cork will be cast off at the side of the mouth and drop into the bottom of the casing, where there is a receptacle 13 to receive the surplus or refused corks, from which they can be taken 'for further use.

The lower end of the tube 10 rests in the stationary frame-work of the corking device.

This frame -work comprises, among other parts, as here shown, two blocks or pieces 14 and 15, one above the other, with space between for the feed-slide 16. The tube 10 extends through the piece 14 and feeds the corks on the table-piece 15 when the slide 16 is 7 tends outward from the sides of the tableplate 15, on which the cork drops from the tube 10 to a position over the mouth of the feed-tube 17, and forms a guide and stop for the cork as it is pushed out by the slide 16. The plunger passes through this guard as it enters tube 17 to force the cork into the bottle.

Connected by suitable mechanism with the plunger 19 is a treadle 21 and from said treadle mechanism extends a wire or cord 22 to alever 23, pivoted on the outside of casing 3. This lever has two arms 24 and 25, Figs. 8 and 9,by which the wheel 21 is controlled that is, the said wheel has a short pin or projection 26 on one side for each of the spouts 6, and at the opposite end from the wire or cord 22 the lever 23 has a spring 27 connected with the main casing. Arm 24 is designed to engage the pins 26 successively at its end and push the wheel around, and the arm 25 is designed to engage the next forward pin and prevent the wheel from turning backward. So it occurs, as the treadle is depressed to drive in a cork, the lever 23 is pulled down at its left, and the bent arm 24, sliding over the next pin to the rearuntil its end drops behind said pin, engages said pin below. Then when pressure is taken off the treadle the spring 27 at the other end of lever 23 same purpose. the invention limited to the form shown and The pressed by the treadle a spring-pawl 27 ,Fig.

8, is arranged on the inside of the casing to engage the pins 26 one after another as they come around. This mechanism illustrates one way of effecting the rotation of the wheel by. or through the treadle, but obviously the intermittent motion desired could be brought about by many other forms of mechanism differing-widely from this, but serving the I do not, therefore, consider described. Again, instead of a treadle, the same movement might be obtained mechanically by power from an engine or the like. The feed-slide 16 likewise is operated through the operations of the treadle, and for this purpose has a bent rod 28, connected with the plunger 19 at one end and'with the slide at the other. Toward its center the rod is pivoted on standard 29. Suitable stops are sup: plied to limit the outward and inward throw of the slide, as seen at 30 and 31, respectively, Fig. 1.

The slide 16, it will be seen,- is rabbeted or cut away at its inner end,so that while it has sufficient depth left to'push forward a cork that may have dropped down on table 15 it will not be deep enough to strike the next cork above, whichwill leave said cork in position to feed down in turn. The cork being fed is pushed forward bythe slide till it drops into the feed-tube 17, and the next succeeding cork is kept in the tube by reason of the depth of the rabbeted portion of the slide, which is too deep to permit the cork to escape. In this way only one corkis taken out at a time, and the others are kept in readiness in the supply-pipe. The slide 16 has a slot to accommodatethe pin 33, which is used to prevent the first cork above from being drawn back and tilted out when the slide is retracted. The pin forms a stop for the cork, and when the slide has been carried back, say, in line with the pin the cork drops on its end in front of the slide ready to be pushed into the feed-tube.

The operation of the machine will be understood from the foregoing description. The object of the feeding apparatus is to keep a constant supply of corks on hand to be automatically fed to the corking device. This is accomplished through the wheel and supplytube. It will be understood that corks are a very light substance, and the mechanism described need not therefore be of a heavy kind. Any kind of a corking device that will work with my attachment may be used. Of course I am aware that corking-machines, broadly, are not new but I am not aware that a cork-feeding machine built on the principle of this machine was ever before known or used.

It should have been stated that the feedwheel stops after each forward movement with IIO 2. In a corking apparatus, a feed-wheel hav-I ing its interior divided into pockets and spouts opening into. said pockets, in combination with a supply-tube, substantially as set forth( 3. In a corking apparatus, a feed-wheel having spouts on its periphery tapering totheir outer extremity I and a supply-tube arranged beneath the wheel in line laterally with the line of said spouts, substantially as set forth.

4. In acorking device, a feed-wheel having spouts with slots in their extremities and a wiper to work in said slots, whereby lodging corks are removed, substantially as set forth.

5. In a corking apparatus, a feed-wheel with spouts on its periphery and a concentric plate, as 7, leading to the mouth of the supply-tube, in combination with said tube, substantially as set forth.

6. In a corking apparatus, a hollow feedwheel with a series of openings around its edge, through which the corks are discharged, a supply-tube, and actuating mechanism to give an intermittent forward movement to the wheel,-substantially as set forth.

. 7. In a corking apparatus, afeed-wheel constructed to contain corks andhaving a series The forwarding mechanism for the" of feed-spouts, in combination with a supplytube, a corking device, and means at the lower end of the supply-tube to carry the corks successivelyto the corking device, substantially as set forth.

8. In a'corking apparatus, an outer casing and a receptacleto receive the surplus cork s, in combination with a feed-wheel in the said casing having spouts on its periphery, a supply-pipe registering with the said spouts, and a concentric stop and guide, as 7, substantially as set forth.

9. Ina corking apparatus, a feed-wheel provided with an interior chamber to contain the corks, radial spouts on the periphery of the wheel, and a guide on which the corks r'estin approaching the feed-spout, in combination with a casing for the wheel and ahopper and openings in the casing andwheel, through which the corks are supplied to the wheel, substantially as set forth.

10. In a corking apparatus, a hollow feedwheel having radial spouts and division plates in the wheel set between the mouths of the spouts and extending across between the sides of the wheel, substantially as set forth.

trie guide over which the corks pass in appreaching the feed-spout, in combination with a feed-spout and a spring-stop, as 12, at the mouth of said spout, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I hereunto set my hand this 27th day of July, 1889.

NATHAN LAROE.

Witnesses:

I. L. COREY, H. T. FISHER.

. 5 11. In a corking apparatus, a feed-wheel having spouts, in combination with a concen-' 

